| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 78.45 |
| Liaison | Emma Blandford |
| Submission Date | May 15, 2012 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Georgia Institute of Technology
OP-23: Stormwater Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Marcia
Kinstler Sustainability Director Office of Environmental Stewardship |
Does the institution have a policy, plan, and/or strategies to reduce stormwater runoff from new development projects? :
Does the institution have a policy, plan, and/or strategies to reduce stormwater runoff from ongoing campus operations? :
A brief description of the institution's stormwater management initiatives:
The 2004 Campus Master Plan Update included a goal of reducing stormwater runoff from campus by 50%, back to the level of the 1950's.
Georgia Tech has removed surface parking lots, added pervious surfaces, and implemented 13 reforestation projects on campus since 2006 to reduce stormwater runoff from campus.
We have also implemented 2, 2250,000 gallons of cisterns to collect rainwater, condensate water, and stormwater run off for reuse in smart irrigation and toilet flushing on campus. We believe our 1,4000,000 cistern is the largest cistern on a US Campus.
The website URL where information about the institution's stormwater management initiatives, plan or policy is available:
Does the institution have a living or vegetated roof?:
A brief description of the institution's living or vegetated roof:
Our new Undergraduate Learning Commons is a 220,000 gsf sustainability showcase which includes a lovely garden roof and solar PV/thermal system of 86kw. We estimate 89% of the water used in the building is from our 1.4 million gallon cistern. 6.5% of the buildng's energy needs are met via renewable energy.
Our new North Avenue Dining Hall was designed as a green dining hall and has a green roof.
Does the institution have porous paving?:
A brief description of the institution's porous paving:
Porous paving is used in the walkways around Klaus Atrium Plaza, the Triangle area and the walkway through the Forest. Brick pavers are laid on sand base and crushed slate walkway at the Ajax Park.
Does the institution have retention ponds?:
A brief description of the institution's retention ponds:
Retention ponds were early steps in the building of our Eco-Commons. The Eco-Commons is a campus wide greenscape with performance criteria. Two of our larger retention points are located between the BioTech Quad and the President's house. Under ground retention at Ajax Park, concrete retention ponds at 811 and 854 Marietta Streets, Tech square and Techway.
Does the institution have stone swales?:
A brief description of the institution's stone swales:
When we designed and built our first LEED Certified building, which was completed in 2006, we included 170,000 gallon cisterns and stone swales. Since then, a variety of bioswales have been implemented across campus.
The river rock swales at Boggs, Klaus and the Area 1 lot on North Avenue are part of the storm water management program at Tech.
Does the institution have vegetated swales?:
A brief description of the institution's vegetated swales:
Yes, vegetative swales are a natural on our campus. They vary from small subltle but effective swales to larger, very pronouced swales.
Vegetative swales were included in the recently completed construction of the Area 1 lot on North Avenue.
Does the institution employ any other technologies or strategies for stormwater management?:
A brief description of other technologies or strategies for stormwater management employed:
Cisterns are prevalent on our campus. Cisterns are used at Klaus, ES&T, MS&E, Nanotechnology, Old CE, Softball, Clough Commons, etc to collect and store rainwater runoff, HVAC condensate, roof tops and landscape surface water for irrigation and non portable use.
Resurfacing natural streams that were covered over at the turn of the century helps restore the natural water sheds on campus.
Our 2005 tree survey indicated we have over 5000 trees on our 440 acre campus in the heart of Atlanta, the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest in the U.S. Since 2006 over 2000 trees have been planted on campus.
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.